Our Lady of the Assumption Co-Cathedral, Opava, Gothic co-cathedral in Město district, Opava, Czech Republic

Our Lady of the Assumption Co-Cathedral is a Gothic brick church with three naves and two towers, the southern one rising about 102 meters above the surroundings. The building sits on Rybí trh street in Opava's center and catches the eye immediately upon arrival.

Construction began under King Ottokar I between 1198 and 1230, with the Teutonic Knights playing a key role in its founding. The building was later designated a national cultural monument and has served as the second seat of the bishop of Ostrava-Opava since 1996.

The church is named after the Assumption of Mary and shapes the face of Opava's historic center with its red brick exterior. Visitors notice immediately how it dominates the square and how people gather here for worship.

The church stands in Opava's centre on Rybí trh, with the south tower rising over 70 metres and visible from several streets. It remains an active Catholic parish church, so time a visit outside Mass. The building is a national cultural monument and the co-cathedral of the Ostrava-Opava diocese.

In 1686 the south tower received a curved lantern crowned with eighteen gilded balls; a contemporary witness claimed it surpassed in beauty and height the newly repaired tower of St Elisabeth in Wrocław. The gilded finial was re-set on 12 October 1689 after the town fire.